Greece’s Air and Rail Accident Investigation Authority (HARSIA) was initially excluded from the investigation into the fatal helicopter collision at Psatha, with the case instead assigned to the Hellenic Police’s Homicide Division.
Following reports in the Greek media, the police and the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (AMNA) that the case had been assigned to the Homicide Division because it involved fatalities.
The ministry also said HARSIA is “explicitly excluded” from investigating aircraft used in aerial firefighting, although no such explicit provision appears in the relevant law.
It later told AMNA that the investigation falls under the jurisdiction of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), rather than HARSIA, because the helicopters had been leased from the United States.
The two firefighting helicopters collided on 2 August, killing the Danish pilot and the Greek aerial operations coordinator aboard one of the aircraft.
Two days later, HARSIA issued a statement saying the investigation was under way “in cooperation with the competent authorities”, in accordance with Article 20 of Law 5014/2023 and its memorandum of cooperation with the Hellenic Police.
Under EU Regulation 996/2010, primary responsibility for investigating an aviation accident lies with the accident investigation authority of the state where it occurred. In this case, that authority is HARSIA.
Sources: Ef.Syn. [1], [2], News247
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